Daytime: I'm Free Tours -- Wed., Nov. 7

Okay, now we're bushed, tired, worn out. The morning started with continental breakfast in the Y Hotel Cafe. After breakfast we walked to the start point of I'm Free Walking Tours at Town Hall Square at 10:30 a.m. in downtown Sydney. The walk lasts three hours and visits The Rocks, Hyde Park Barracks, Harbour Bridge, Circular Quay, and tours through downtown shopping and financial areas.

Our tour guide, Lisa.

The weather was overcast and very bright, so these pictures did not turn out very crisp. Here's what we saw...

Queen Victoria statue in front of QVB (Queen Victoria Building)

Islay, the talking dog statue.

Australian clock in QVB.

Lisa told us there are two clocks, one in each hall of the QVB. Pictured above is the Australian-themed clock. We did not get to see the English-themed clock, but apparently every hour on the hour, the clock replicates the beheading of King Charles including his head falling off. We plan to go back to the QVB to watch this unusual clock do its thing. [Aside: The Australians love their abbreviations and shortened words...Oz for Australia, QVB, CBD=Central Business District, footy for Australian rules football. I'm sure we'll learn lots more.]

Sydney cityscape with unknown people

This is the outside wall of a building downtown.

Australian white ibis.

The Sydney Tower Eye, also called the Golden Bucket by the locals, has a 160,000 gallon water tank on top of it to counterbalance the tower.



Sydney Tower Eye

About 30 people on our tour today!!



GPO (General Post Office)

Popular artwork here (see photo below)--bird cages hang between buildings. This art is called "Forgotten Songs." When you walk under the cages, birdsong from native Australian birds start playing. In the daytime, birdcalls from daytime birds plays. At night, birdcalls from nighttime birds plays. On the street is this information: "These recordings are from bird species that once sang in central Sydney before Europeans settled and gradually forced them away. Some of these birds can still be  heard on the city margins where they find food and shelter in native vegetation." There are no birds in the cages.

Customs House

In the floor of the Customs House is a 3-D diorama of downtown Sydney. Way cool.

Harbour Bridge and Circular Quay are very popular!

Bob with a Harbour Bridge backdrop. This was the end of our guided tour.

Water fountain as art.

Veddy British.

On the way up to walk across the Harbour Bridge.

Our tour guide told us it's only 1.3 km one way across the Harbour Bridge. Well, you know us: let's do it. So up we went and did a trip across the bridge and back. Great experience. We DID NOT do the bridge climb which our guide informed us cost about $200.00 Australian.

Our first view of a rainbow lorikeet.

Pedestrian walkway on the Harbour Bridge.

From the bridge we were able to take some excellent photos of the harbour.

Sydney Opera House

Inviting neighborhood on NE side of Harbour Bridge

These eateries and shops are on the north end of the bridge.

A bakery display we couldn't resist

Apricot crumble and a chocolate mint slice.

Rainbow lorikeet.

Rainbow lorikeet.

People doing the Harbour Bridge Climb.

Okay, these are adorable.

Great graphics!

A three-story Apple store!!

Here's where we're staying for our first three nights until our timeshare kicks in. We don't yet have a timeshare for our fourth week in Melbourne. If we can't get a timeshare in Melbourne, we plan to spend our last week traveling the coast and staying in motels or inns. 

 

Our humble abode in downtown Sydney.

Bob and I found these crosswalk signs rather unusual.

I am breaking today into two parts because this blog is already so long!



 

Travel Bug bravely continuing on to Part 2 for today...Please see next blog for how our evening went.

The Land of Oz, Aus, Aaahs -- Wed., Nov. 7

Our flight to Australia was long, bumpy (pilot had to avoid lots of storms by the equator), and exciting (because we're excited to be on the way).

We made it! Customs was a breeze. We had to go through the K9 line with lots of other people to have our bags sniffed by a canine. The dog was totally bored by our bags. Fun to watch him work, though.

I am so confused by the whole International Date Line thing. I'm writing to you on Wednesday, but it's only Tuesday in the U.S. We're awaiting results of the elections.

We took a shuttle bus from the airport to the Y Hotel right in the heart of downtown Sydney. We can walk to all the downtown sights from here. Our room is very basic with a shared bathroom across the hall. But really all we're doing is sleeping here...the rest of our time we will be out exploring. Free continental breakfast is included. This morning I had orange juice, corn flakes with soy milk and a croissant with peanut butter. If you want, for $5.00 you can upgrade to a full breakfast with eggs and hash browns.

Our timeshare starts Friday about 65 miles south of Sydney or two hours north of Canberra, the Australian Capital (similar to our Washington, D.C.).

This morning we plan to take a free (tips are encouraged), three-hour walking tour of downtown Sydney. We can already tell that trying to explore Sydney in a few days will be like trying to explore New York City in three to four days (impossible). So we will hit the highlights and a few unexpected places as well. I can already tell the Royal Botanic Gardens are HIGH on my list of must sees.

Welcome to our newest follower, Rosemary B. of Escape2aus, who writes a blog about traveling in Australia! How relevant is that?  

Here's our final photo from Hawaii: the two of us with our rented red Chevy Camaro (Budget upgraded our compact car to this!) in front of our "resort" during our stay.

Susan and Bob at Iain and Tess's house.

Travel Bug and Bob off to explore Sydney on foot.

Third Leg: International Date Line -- Mon., Nov. 5

Our flight to Australia today takes us across the International Date Line. We leave Honolulu at 11:50 a..m. on Nov. 5 and, after flying 10-1/2 hours, we arrive in Sydney, Australia around 7:20 p.m. on Nov. 6. If you think gaining or losing an hour with Daylight Savings Time is disconcerting, try losing or gaining a day. That's what we'll be experiencing--losing a day. But we gain it back at the end of our trip, so what's lost is found again.

Yesterday morning Bob and Mike ran/walked the North Shore of Oahu. It's big surf time and they took a break to watch part of a surfing competition. Grand prize: $95,000! Of course a trip to the North Shore is not complete without shave ice (snow cone on steroids). Mike and Bob love their shave ice after hours of being in the sun.

Also yesterday morning, Iain took Tess and I to brunch at Blu Water Grill and we sat on the patio again. This time we had a daylight view. Tess had Eggs Benedict, Iain had a Denver Omelette (with lots of salsa), and I had Eggs Florentine. Our breakfasts came with home-fried potatoes and a mini-pancake bar with macadamia nut, chocolate chip, and blueberry pancakes. Thank you, Iain.

Iain

Tess

Last night Tess made Oven-Baked Macaroni and Cheese which was served with a homemade mushroom/onion soup. Tasty indeed. She made it especially for me because macaroni and cheese is so easy for me to eat. Thank you, Tess. And Iain too (for putting up with food you don't particularly care for).

Since I can eat "real" food again, I have become obsessed with eating. Everything tastes good. My back teeth don't hurt anymore when I chew back there.

We watched "Amazing Race" and did a little laundry last night as well. It's nice to start the next portion of our trip with clean clothes.

Thank you once again to our host and hostess for a great place to stay to kick off our trip.

If you don't hear from me for a few days, don't worry. It's most likely because we're super busy exploring a new continent or we haven't found an internet connection. (Although we're told Australia is a very wired country.)

We're so excited!!!

Next post will be frrom The Land Down Under...Oz.

Travel Bug traveling out of country.

Soccer Winners! -- Sat., Nov. 3

This morning we braved Honolulu traffic and headed west to the Waipio Soccer Complex to watch Bob's niece, Amanda, compete in the AYSO soccer finals.  Amanda plays in the girls under 10 league. Bob's brother, Steven, is their coach.

The weather was gorgeous with a nice trade wind blowing. Nancy, Bob's sister in law, brought a mat we could sit on which was very nice of her. The team played very well and won handily.

Here are photos from the soccer match and awards ceremony.

Waipio Soccer Park--about 24 soccer fields here.

Amanda keeping her eye on he ball.

Amanda in action--you go girl!

Bob and Nancy hanging out.

The girls checking out the trophies.

Clapping after the coach congratulates them.

Admiring the trophies--sweet!

Coach Steven--Bob's youngest brother

Team photo.

We were happy to see the black-necked stilts at the soccer park. They are only in Hawaii for a few months each year. Here they are..

Next we headed to Big City Diner for breakfast/lunch. I had grilled wild salmon, scrambled eggs and hashed browns. Bob had a large salad with grilled wild salmon on it. Bob got to watch part of the University of Hawaii football game.

We drove past our former house in Kapolei to see if the new owners were keeping it up. It looked okay. They hadn't made the repairs that they asked for discounts from the price on. It's been a little over a year since we sold it.

We headed back toward where we were staying, but took a little detour to Liliha Bakery to pick up dessert for tonight--Coco Puffs. Coco Puffs are a specialty of this bakery. They are a cream puff shell filled with chocolate pudding with a dollop of chantilly cream on the very top. So delicious!

From the H-1 freeway, I was able to snag a photo of Diamond Head!

This evening, we took our host and hostess out to dinner at Blu Water Grill in Hawaii Kai and ate at a table overlooking the water. We had a good evening and excellent food.

Iain and Tess

I ordered Macadamia-Nut-Crusted Prawns with mashed Okinawan sweet potatoes and a small salad. I forgot to take a photo when it arrived. As you can see some of it is missing already.

Our view from the patio.

Here we are.

Bob had a plate of steamed vegeables with garlic mashed potatoes and herbed chicken. Iain and Tess both ordered Beef Kalbi wth cole slaw. We enjoyed some wine and lively repartee.

After dinner we went back to their house for our Coco Puffs dessert. Bob sat in the hot tub for a while. Everyone else was tired and headed off to sleep.

Our rental car is a red Chevy Camaro. I feel like we're doing the Hawaii 5-0 tour. We need to get a picture of us next to it. LOL.

Oh, yesterday I forgot to put in the photos I took from Iain and Tess's deck. They have a gorgeous home up on a hillside overlooking the ocean. Yesterday it was so clear, we could see Molokai and Maui from their house.

Low island is Molokai. Behind it in the haze is Maui.

Looking another direction from their deck.

Thank you Iain and Tess for your hospitality while we are here. I feel like we're at a resort.

Iain and Tess have three shelties. Here's Lady posing for me.

Travel Bug out.

Second Leg, Honolulu, Hawaii -- Fri., Nov. 2

Aloha from Hawaii. Our flight was on time, but very full and very noisy. We had screaming children most of the five hours and very gabby people all around us.

Here are some photos from our flight starting in Portland and then flying into Honolulu.

Take off from Portland (Oregon) International Airport

The Columbia River, Portland, Oregon

Kaneohe Marine Corps Base, Oahu, Hawaii

Kaneohe Bay, Oahu

Ford Island

Waipahu on the south shore of Oahu.

 

Where we used to live in Makakilo, a subdivision of Kapolei.

South shore, Oahu

Arizona Memorial, Ford Island.

South shore Oahu--Ewa Beach to the Ko'Olau Mountains.

Honolulu International Airport.

Traffic into Honolulu at 2:00 p.m. on a Friday.

We made it safe and sound which is a good thing. Temperature here is in the 80s.

We are sitting on the deck on our friends lanai overlooking the ocean. I have had some grapefruit juice with a little vodka in it. Life is good. Pretty soon we need to go find dinner. It's 6:00 p.m. here, but it feels like 11:00 p.m. Central Time. Food!

For dinner we went to Cha Cha Cha for Mexican food.

Tomorrow morning we are going to our niece's soccer game at 11:00 a.m. Steven, Bob's brother, is the coach. After the game, we'll do lunch.

Bob plans to go walking with his running buddy, Mike, on Sunday morning.

That's all for tonight.